By Blake Jackson
The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is making it easier for deer hunters in the St. Louis Region to participate in chronic wasting disease (CWD) surveillance during the 2026-2027 deer hunting season. Self-service deer head collection freezers are now available in six counties: Crawford, Franklin, Jefferson, St. Charles, St. Louis, and Warren.
The freezer locations provide hunters with another option for submitting deer for CWD testing. Hunters can use the sites at their convenience during the season, except during periods when mandatory sampling requirements apply.
In Lincoln, St. Charles, and Warren counties, the voluntary freezer sites and other voluntary sampling locations will be unavailable November 14-15, 2026. During those dates, hunters must bring harvested deer or deer heads to designated mandatory CWD sampling stations.
Before visiting a freezer site, hunters must remove the head from the harvested deer. For bucks, antlers should also be removed.
Approximately six inches of the neck should remain attached to the head. Supplies such as trash bags, zip ties, and information forms will be provided at the collection locations.
Hunters must complete the required information when submitting a deer head. This includes their name and contact information, the deer’s Telecheck identification number, and the location where the animal was harvested.
After the head is placed in the freezer, MDC personnel will retrieve it and collect the appropriate tissue samples for laboratory testing.
Hunters can monitor their results online by using their Telecheck ID number. Results are generally available within three to five weeks. MDC will contact hunters directly if testing identifies a positive CWD result.
CWD is a fatal neurological disease caused by abnormal proteins called prions and can affect deer without producing obvious symptoms. Testing is necessary to determine whether an animal is infected.
While there are no known cases of CWD transmission to humans, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises against eating meat from deer that test positive for the disease.
CWD has been detected in several Missouri counties, including Crawford, Franklin, Jefferson, St. Louis, and Washington counties in the St. Louis Region. By submitting harvested deer for testing, hunters help MDC track the disease and gather information needed to monitor Missouri’s deer population and support long-term wildlife management.
Photo Credit: istock-dusanpetkovic
Categories: Missouri, Education, General